Stroll insists on 'commitment' to Aston despite performance shortfall

Lance Stroll insists he remains committed to Aston Martin’s F1 project despite the speculation surrounding the Canadian’s future amid his lacklustre tenure with his father’s outfit.

Stroll, who graduated to Formula 1 in 2017 with Williams at the age of 18, has shown glimpses of brilliance in the past, claiming a pole position and three career podiums in the sport.

But while there is no doubting the 25-year-old’s skills, his results since Racing Point’s transition into Aston Martin F1 in 2021 have fallen short of expectations.

Outpaced by former teammate Sebastian Vettel, Stroll was comprehensively outscored in 2023 by the German driver’s successor at Aston, Fernando Alonso, who scored all eight of the team’s eight podiums.

So far this season, the performance gap with the Spaniard has been equally stark which, coupled with Stroll’s seemingly downbeat demeanor, has generated questions about his motivation in F1 and long-term future in the sport.

But the Canadian shrugs off the perceptions and conjecture and insists his determination to succeed with his father’s team is intact.

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“It’s amazing to see how far we’ve come as a team for the last five years. We’ve grown so much as a team since we were in pink colours.

“We have a very exciting wind tunnel that’s being built, we have an incredible facility that’s now in Silverstone that we moved into last year, so there’s a lot of pieces of this puzzle that are really coming together,” he explained.

“Along with the talented people that have been in service for many years, a lot of new talented people have joined and are joining, which makes this project very exciting.

“So, in my mind, you know, definitely here for the future. That’s where my head’s at.”

Pressed on the topic, Stroll underscored his sense of commitment.

“For sure, I’m committed to this whole project,” he added.

“Like I said, how we’ve gone from a team that had 350, 400 people in 2019 and now we’re pushing the number to 1000 people. It looks very different at Silverstone now to 18 months ago.

“So yes, I’m definitely committed and excited to be a part of this project.”

When it was suggested that Stroll would endlessly always receive the benefit of the doubt at Aston Martin given his particular status, he said: “I’m the most competitive person I know. I’m someone that I like to see myself do super well and perform super well.

“And it feels good even if times are tough. Last weekend to just pick up a couple of points was nice, I still enjoy that.

“I’m the first person that’s hard on myself on a day when things don’t go well, and I’m still as excited and happy as ever when I have a great day since the last seven, eight years that I’ve been in Formula 1.

“So that feeling is still driving me to keep pushing, to keep going. And yes, I hate having bad days, just like I’m sure everyone does in this paddock.

“It’s a team effort,” Stroll continued. “It’s fun to be a part of this journey and this project and see all these elements at Silverstone coming together.

“Last year we started the season really strong and that was like a very big step forward for us. We had a bit of a dip. And this year has been a little bit more challenging but I still see a lot of positivity and excitement, which makes me positive and excited.”

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